Rethinking tourism in the Mediterranean

Each summer, the Mediterranean becomes the world’s playground. Millions flock to its coasts, straining fragile ecosystems that, beneath the glossy postcards, are struggling to survive. The challenge is stark: how to keep tourism, the region’s economic lifeline, from eroding the very landscapes and cultures that make it unique.

For over a decade, the IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation (IUCN Med) has been working to promote sustainable tourism across the region, from developing ecotourism models with the MEET Network to strengthening the capacities of local stakeholders. Building on this experience, IUCN Med is now leading the Blue Tourism Initiative in the Mediterranean, part of a wider programme that also extends to the Western Indian Ocean and the Caribbean. This regional initiative seeks to rewire the sector toward sustainability by combining research with hands-on action in some of the Mediterranean’s most vulnerable sites.

In recent years, IUCN Med has also laid the evidence base for action. The report Mapping Blue Tourism (2024) provided the first vulnerability assessment of Mediterranean coastal and marine ecosystems under tourist pressure, while Sustainable Blue Tourism in the Mediterranean (2025) offered a sobering diagnosis of the sector’s challenges such as climate change, unchecked coastal development, mass tourism, and a roadmap for reform. That roadmap outlined seven policy pathways, from climate adaptation and destination stewardship to sustainable finance and governance reforms.

Actions on the ground

The work is not staying on paper. In Al Hoceima National Park in Morocco, new partnerships with local NGOs are creating nature-based experiences designed to draw visitors away from mass-tourism circuits and toward community-led ecotourism. Trails are being restored, signage installed, and small group tours designed to showcase the park’s landscapes and cultural traditions—while giving local communities a fair share of the income.

Across the sea, on Djerba Island in Tunisia, fragile wetlands are being equipped with nature trails and interpretive panels, while hotels are learning to cut water waste, reduce plastics, and plant native vegetation. Iberostar, a global hospitality player, is among the partners testing how biodiversity standards can reshape the hotel industry on one of the Mediterranean’s most touristic islands.

As IUCN Med director Maher Mahjoub has noted, the stakes are high: “Coastal ecosystems are under siege, but with the right policies and partnerships, tourism can help protect rather than destroy them.”

Running until 2026, the Blue Tourism initiative is designed to transform tourism into a driver of sustainability by coupling rigorous research with concrete action in some of the world’s most vulnerable coastal and marine ecosystems. Launched in July 2022 for a four-year period, the project has a total budget of approximately €4.3 million. It is co-funded by the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) and supported by Our Blue Future (GIZ), the World Bank, UNEP, and project partners including IDDRI, eco-union, CANARI, CORDIO, and IUCN Med itself.

For a region whose identity and economy are bound to its coasts, that transformation may be the only way to keep the Mediterranean’s “blue heart” beating.

Further information:

Mapping Blue Tourism: Vulnerability Assessment of Mediterranean Coastal and Marine Ecosystems,

Sustainable Blue Tourism in the Mediterranean: Trends, Challenges, and Policy Pathways

* This article has been prepared to showcase the actions led by IUCN Med and its partners in the Mediterranean, in the context of the IUCN World Conservation Congress, highlighting how the region’s experience can contribute to global conservation debates and solutions.